Spring break 2011: More people means more tons of trash

CORPUS CHRISTI - Drew Ward hates to see people throw trash on the beach.

"Nothing goes on the ground around us," he said.

The 25-year-old Corpus Christi man makes sure to pick up his beverage cans; and thanks to yellow mesh bags distributed by the city, he has a place to put them at the end of the day.

Dotted between flashy beads and colorful bathing suits Thursday at J.P. Luby Park, the bags could be seen tied to cars parked on the sand.

It's the second year the bags have been distributed at Corpus Christi and Port Aransas beaches. This year officials have handed out nearly 5,000 so far. Corpus Christi city workers estimate there are another 10,000 left.

"It seems like people are using them more this year, and we really appreciate it," said Derek Herzog, the city's interim beach superintendent.

Even so when the party ends each night, there's plenty of work the next morning for city workers.

City staff estimate that between 6 tons and 15 tons of trash are collected each day by workers, depending on how nice the weather was the day before. More sun means more people and more trash.

Workers begin at 7 a.m., with four to six employees combing the beaches for trash, Herzog said.

It takes more than three hours to clean a half-mile stretch, he said.

To cut down the cleanup, parking attendants hand the yellow bags out for free to motorists as they enter the beach.

The bags began as a project by the Nueces River Authority nearly five years ago. They first were handed out to tubers on the Frio River, said Rocky Freund, deputy executive director of the river authority.

Last year the group partnered with Corpus Christi, Port Aransas, area counties and conservation groups to distribute thousands of bags to spring breakers.

"We're trying to instill ownership and responsibility in people," Freund said. "We want them to have pride in their natural resources."

Herzog said typical beach litter includes beer boxes and beer cans Glass bottles, which are prohibited on the beach, also are occasionally found.

Any littering is a Class C misdemeanor which can bring a fine of as much as $2,000.